Gang violence in Sweden: Prime Minister asked the army for help

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has called a meeting of the country’s armed forces and police chief to take action against gang violence that killed 11 people in September alone.

Two people were killed in two separate armed attacks in the capital Stockholm on Wednesday, and a woman in her 20s was killed yesterday when a house was bombed in the city of Uppsala.

Earlier this week, two people were killed when an armed attacker opened fire on a bar in the Sandviken district.

In his rare public speech, Swedish Prime Minister Kristersson said: “We are going through a difficult time for Sweden. Last night a 25-year-old woman couldn’t wake up again. “We will catch the gangs and beat them,” she said.

Kristersson formed a center-right minority government with the support of the populist, anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats in last year’s general election, ending eight years of social democratic administration in Sweden. Another factor that led to Kristersson’s coalition victory in the elections was his commitment to preventing growing gang violence.

As part of the measures taken in relation to this issue, it was decided to increase the powers granted to the police and toughen penalties for crimes committed with weapons.

THE COUNTRY THAT RECEIVES THE MOST IMMIGRANTS

The decisions taken have not yet come into force, but Kristersson blamed the problems on previous governments. “Irresponsible immigration policy and failed integration have led us to this point,” Kristersson said.

Sweden has implemented liberal immigration policies for many years and became the European country that accepted the largest number of immigrants per capita during the 2015 migration crisis. These policies had been modified by the previous social democratic government, but the Kristersson government hardened even more.

About 20 percent of Sweden’s population of 10.5 million is made up of people born in other countries.

The Social Democrats, the opposition party and the largest party in parliament, yesterday called on the government to change the law and allow military support to stop gang violence. “This is not Sweden, this is not what Sweden should be,” Magdalena Andersson, leader of the Social Democrats, said at a press conference.

Police estimate that around 30,000 people in Sweden are directly or indirectly involved in gang crime. Acts of violence have also spread to smaller cities where such crimes are typically rare. (Reuters)